Wall Street flat as S&P 500 falls shy of record

The S&P 500 snapped a four-session winning streak, to end just shy of a third straight record closing high.

The benchmark index had gained for four straight sessions as investors' appetite for equities has been buoyed by supportive US economic data recently and expectations of monetary easing by the European Central Bank. The 10-year US Treasury note's yield slipped below 2.44 percent, its lowest level since July.

The drop in fixed-income yields could lift the prices of dividend-paying stocks. The S&P utilities index rose 0.5 percent. It was the S&P 500's best-performing sector.

The Dow Jones Transportation Average extended its run into record territory, ending at a lifetime high of 8,075.88 after hitting a record intraday high of 8,102.44. A total of 225 stocks on the Big Board and Nasdaq touched 52-week highs, while 59 issues hit 52-week lows. Notables touching 52-week highs included ConocoPhillips and Dow Chemical.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 42.32 points or 0.25 percent, to 16,633.18. The S&P 500 lost 2.13 points or 0.11 percent, to end at 1,909.78. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 11.99 points or 0.28 percent, to 4,225.08.

Most other leading European indexes traded flat or slightly lower, though still close to multi-year highs, with declines by fashion brand Hugo Boss and consumer group Ahold weighing on the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 .